


Bear With Me

by Fire_Bear



Series: It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas [5]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Christmas, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Presents, M/M, Teddy Bears, There are always teddy bears
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-15
Updated: 2016-12-15
Packaged: 2018-09-08 00:48:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,642
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8823352
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fire_Bear/pseuds/Fire_Bear
Summary: Alfred has the perfect present for Arthur just waiting to be wrapped - too bad he's horrible at wrapping presents. Who will he get to help him?





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Zeplerfer](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zeplerfer/gifts).



> This is for the prompt: Character A can’t wrap gifts to save their life. Character B is their neighbor and can help.
> 
> Teddy bears feature heavily again. Whoops.

Alfred's next door neighbours were the Kirklands. They had just moved into the house a few months before with their kids, Arthur and Peter. Arthur was Alfred's age so they sometimes spoke while waiting for the school bus in the mornings. Though they _had_ spoken, Alfred didn't think they were close enough to be considered friends – despite the fact that he _wanted_ to know Arthur better for some reason.

With Christmas coming up, however, Alfred decided to buy him a present in an effort to become better friends. He'd already done some reconnaissance by asking Peter when he came by one day to retrieve his ball. Though the answer to his question had been a teddy bear, Alfred had pushed aside his misgivings and bought one, a little one in a suit so it looked a little more formal. All he had to do was wrap it as well as all of his other presents. There was one problem with that.

He was absolutely rotten at wrapping presents.

So instead of wrapping any of them, Alfred put it off. There were still a few weeks till he needed to do it so he figured he could find someone to help him. In fact, he was vaguely planning to get his mom to help him wrap his friends' presents and then drag a friend to help him wrap his family's presents instead of trying to pretend the presents his mom were wrapping were for someone else. A thought hit him as he stood at the bus stop one day, waiting for Arthur to turn up: he could ask Arthur! That way, he'd get to know him better, too!

However, his plans were derailed when Arthur didn't turn up and he got on the bus without him. In fact, Alfred didn't see Arthur at school at all that day and it was time to go home before Alfred realised it. Wondering what had happened, he approached Kiku, one of Arthur's friends. “Hey, Kiku!” he called as he rushed towards him. “Can I talk to ya for a minute?”

Turning, obviously surprised, Kiku nodded, glancing at Matthew who he'd been walking with. “Yes? What's wrong?”

“I was just wondering what happened to Arthur. He wasn't at the bus stop this morning...”

“Oh! His mother insisted he stay at home till after Christmas,” Kiku explained.

“What? Why?!”

“Haven't you heard?” Matthew interjected, raising an eyebrow. “He broke his ankle yesterday.”

“His mother is rather protective of both of her sons so she doesn't want him to go to school till his ankle has healed,” Kiku added.

“Oh,” said Alfred, relaxing a little. “I thought something bad had happened.”

Matthew glanced between Kiku and Alfred. “You live next to him, don't you?” he asked. “'Cause I need to give him his homework so could you take it instead? Me and Kiku were going to go Christmas shopping today...”

“Sure!” said Alfred, keen to help.

They parted ways and Alfred caught the bus home, his bag far heavier than he thought it should be. He went home first to tell his dad where he'd be and then he made his way next door. After ringing the bell a couple of times, it was answered by Peter who peered up at him. “Oh!” he said. “You're Alfred.”

“Yeah,” said Alfred. He held up the books he had brought with him. “Arthur's work got sent home so I brought it over. Thought I'd see how he's doing, too.”

“Uh huh,” Peter said, sounding suspicious. He stepped out of the way and, once Alfred had stepped inside, he swung the door closed. “Arthur!” he shouted up the stairs. “Visitor!” Looking back at Alfred, he shrugged a shoulder. “He's in his room.”

Nodding, Alfred headed upstairs where he found one of the doors open a crack. Peeking into the room, he found Arthur struggling to get off his bed. Doctor Who and Harry Potter posters adorned his walls and there was a chair with a pile of teddy bears. An old-fashioned school desk, complete with vacant ink well, was pushed under the window. Books and notepads were strewn across it, the only place which was untidy, though Alfred thought there was probably some sort of system.

Knocking on the door, Alfred pushed it open and entered, startling Arthur who had only managed to swing his legs over the side of the bed. He looked up and blinked. “Oh. Alfred. Sorry, I would have told you that I wasn't coming to school but I don't have your number. And, well, I slept through my alarm...”

“That's all right,” Alfred replied, moving over to the desk. “It looks sore.” Lifting the books slightly, he added, “This is your homework.” Placing it on the desk, he turned and made his way over to Arthur. “How'd it happen? Forgot to ask Mattie.”

“Oh, uh.” Turning red, Arthur looked away as Alfred sat beside him. “Yesterday, Peter wanted to fly his kite since there was a bit of a wind. Of course, while we were at the park, it got tangled in a tree so I had to climb up to free it.”

“And you fell?”

“And I fell. Peter and Mum were going mental. Now Peter feels like it's his fault and is avoiding me and Mum's overreacting.” Arthur rolled his eyes. “I mean, I can hobble around school just fine, I'm sure.”

“You can barely get out of bed,” Alfred said with a laugh.

“Oh, shut up.”

They fell silent. Desperately, Alfred tried to think of something to say and thought of the Christmas present he had yet to give Arthur. “Have you finished all your Christmas shopping yet? It'll be hard to do that when you're on crutches.”

“It's all done and dusted,” Arthur replied. “Everything's wrapped and ready to go. Well, apart from the decorations. My parents are going to have to put them up with just Peter at the weekend because...” He gestured at his ankle. “I like to get everything else sorted the first weekend in December so I don't need to worry about it later.”

“Lucky!” Alfred exclaimed. “I can't wrap presents at all so I still have to do that. They always end up in a mess so I get my mom to help me. But then I have to get someone else to help me wrap hers. It's such a pain!”

Arthur blinked at him. “Wait, you need help wrapping presents?”

“Uh, yeah. That's what I said.”

“I could help,” Arthur told him, once again reaching for his crutches.

“What?” Alfred stared blankly at Arthur, waiting for his brain to catch up.

“I'll help you wrap all your presents is what I'm saying,” said Arthur, sounding impatient as he organised himself, getting ready to stand. “I don't need my ankle to wrap presents.”

The image of a teddy bear in a little suit flashed into Alfred's mind and his eyes widened. “What? No! I-I don't want to make you move or-or make you help me. I mean, I'll be fine. I'll just-”

“Alfred,” said Arthur shortly, shooting him a glare. “I need to get out of this house before I go insane. I can't get a moment's peace with my mum around but I'm sure I can convince her to let me go next door. So you're letting me come help you whether you like it or not.”

Panicked, Alfred waved his arms around. “No, really-!”

“Honestly,” Arthur murmured, standing. He swayed a little and grimaced but awkwardly turned himself to look down at Alfred. “This is a thank you for... Well, for bringing me my school work. Come on.”

“Ah, eh,” Alfred looked around, hoping for a distraction of some sort. “Um... Let me just... I'll go set up,” he said, an idea forming about how to hide Arthur's present. “You... You take your time.”

“Okay,” said Arthur. “I'll see you in a few minutes.”

So Alfred rushed from Arthur's room and bounded down the stairs. With a quick wave and farewell to Peter, he wrenched open their front door and let it swing closed behind him as he dashed across the lawns of the two front yards. Leaping up the front steps, he barged into the house to find that his mom was home and in the process of removing her coat. She looked up as he hurried in and blinked at him as he looked around.

“Alfred?” said Mrs. Jones. “What are you up to?”

“Arthur's coming over to help me wrap presents so I gotta get all the stuff for that and I needta hide his present so where's the wrapping paper and stuff?” Alfred said all in one breath.

“In the cupboard...” Mrs. Jones slowly replied, gesturing at it. Alfred dove forward and began to search for it. “What were you doing at the Kirklands? You don't usually go there after school...”

“Had to take homework to Arthur. He's broken his ankle. Off school. Mom's being protective of him. Fell out of a tree. Trying to get a kite. Thanks for the wrapping paper.”

Ignoring his mom's bewildered expression, Alfred rushed up the stairs, tripped on one, managed to stay upright and burst into his room. It was a mess but he didn't bother to tidy up, skidding to a halt in front of his wardrobe. Pulling open the doors, he dropped to his knees, dragged out the clothes which were piled at the bottom of the wardrobe and threw them over his shoulder. Then he pulled out all the presents, strewing them across the floor as he searched for the bear. Upon finding it, he unrolled the wrapping paper, plopped the bear down on its back and then rolled the paper around it. He grabbed a pair of scissors, cut off the piece and relaxed a little. Since the roll of paper had been longer than the bear was, he folded the excess down and stuck it down with a bit of tape. Satisfied that it was suitably hidden, he began to sort out which presents were for who, gathering all his friends' presents in a pile around the teddy bear.

Just as he had finished gathering his family's presents into a smaller pile, he heard a strange clicking noise and looked up to find Arthur hobbling through the door. “Artie!” he cried, excited to see that he'd made it. “Your mom let you go?”

“Yeah,” Arthur replied, panting a little. “Just...” He looked at the pile of presents on the floor and the mess surrounding it. Lifting his gaze, he stared incredulously at Alfred who blushed. “Let's do this on the bed so I can actually get up again.”

“Right.” Alfred arranged everything on his bed and they both settled side by side.

Instead of Arthur simply wrapping them as his parents did, Arthur showed Alfred how to wrap a box before making Alfred do it. Arthur watched over him as he wrapped the rest of the presents, providing instructions and taking over if Alfred was making more of a mess of things than he had anticipated. It was fun, Alfred laughing at Arthur's exasperation and Arthur unable to keep a straight face when Alfred couldn't get a piece of tape off his fingers. Alfred was having fun up until they ran out of presents.

“Oh,” he said. “We're done.”

“What are you talking about?” Arthur asked, shuffling to the side of the bed. Perplexed, Alfred merely watched as Arthur retrieved his crutches and began to get to his feet. He hobbled across the room and stopped in front of the pile of presents Alfred had set aside. Alfred stopped breathing as Arthur surveyed them. “These need wrapped as well, right? We may as well get them all do- Oh! You've wrapped one already.” And Arthur stooped to pick up his own present. “Why's this one wrapped?” he asked as he looked at it, seeming amused.

“Er,” said Alfred, thinking fast. “I, er, tried to wrap them a few days ago but gave up after... that.”

Sighing, Arthur shook his head. “Honestly! You're really bad at this.” Holding it up higher, Arthur pointed at the place where Alfred had stuck down the paper. “There's only one piece of sellotape on this. It'll-” Before Arthur could finish speaking, the paper flopped away from where Alfred had stuck it down and the bear fell out of the package. Startled, Arthur let go of the paper as well and stared as the bear bounced and turned over, revealing itself to him.

A short silence. Then Alfred leapt forward, grabbing the bear from its prone position. “Aha, er, whoops. Told you I'm bad at wrapping things!”

Arthur cast a glance over the rest of the presents and then lifted his eyebrows. “I take it this isn't for one of your friends?”

“Wha-? Ah, eh, I suppose not...?” Alfred quickly picked up the bear and instinctively held it behind his back. “I, um, y'know...” Feeling his cheeks heating up, he ducked his head, wishing he'd never bothered to mention the presents to Arthur.

“Oh,” Arthur said, sounding a little upset. “I see. You're giving it to someone you like, huh? Sorry.”

Alfred's heart skipped a beat. Someone he liked? The thought made him suck in a breath, glancing up at Arthur from under his eyelashes. Arthur wasn't looking at him, studying the presents instead. The smile he had been wearing since Alfred had turned up in his bedroom had vanished and it made Alfred's chest ached. Pushing those feelings (and questions about _why_ he was feeling like that) aside, Alfred said, “It's-”

But Arthur started to speak at the same moment. “I'll go.”

“What? Why?” Alfred asked, shocked into straightening up and staring at Arthur. His eyes were shining more than normal and Alfred realised that he was holding back tears. “Ar-” he began, starting towards him.

“I'm just sore,” Arthur hastily told him. “I should get home.” And, jerkily turning, Arthur began to hobble out of the room.

Aghast, Alfred watched him go for a moment. Then he glanced down at the teddy bear. Perhaps he should explain it. What was the harm in Arthur knowing who it was for? Maybe Alfred's reaction to Arthur finding it had upset Arthur. It had probably seemed like he didn't want Arthur snooping or that he didn't trust Arthur. Worried, Alfred hurried forwards and threw himself into Arthur's path, nearly knocking him over as he did so.

“Alfred,” Arthur growled, frowning now.

“It's for you,” Alfred said quickly.

They froze, staring at each other. Arthur looked shocked. Then he glanced down at the bear and frowned again. “What? Why would you get me that?”

“Peter told me that you liked teddy bears,” Alfred explained. “So, uh.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

“I see.”

“Yup.” Alfred watched Arthur intently, noting the blush that slowly spread across his cheeks and the way he kept his eyes on the teddy instead of looking at him. Thankfully, there was also a small, pleased smile and Alfred relaxed. Grinning, he said, “Come on back to the bed and help me wrap the rest of the presents. I really am horrible without you.”

“Alfred...”

“Don't go,” Alfred pleaded.

After another moment's hesitation, Arthur relented. “Oh, all right.”

They wrapped the rest of the presents except for Arthur's which Alfred insisted on keeping till Christmas Eve when they could properly exchange presents.

(Christmas Eve came with a few surprises. Alfred wrapped Arthur's teddy in his own messy style which made Arthur laugh when he saw it. But he'd also bought Arthur a book in the meantime so he was still surprised – though he'd gotten his mom to wrap that one. As for Arthur, he got Alfred a full-size Captain America shield and Alfred was ecstatic. The mistletoe they found themselves under, though, was the biggest surprise of all.)

 


End file.
